Rebel Wilson Wary Of Royal Themed Jokes At Upcoming BAFTA Awards

Rebel Wilson is one actress and comedian that has never shied from being expressive about her emotions and thoughts, whether on-screen or off-screen. She was only recently announced as the host of the 2022 BAFTA awards ceremony.

Wilson revealed during a recent interview that she plans to crack jokes on the British royal family when she takes the stage at the ceremony. She also shared that she’s being cautious with her statements about the royals. Read on to find out what she said. 

The 2022 BAFTA Film Awards will be held on Sunday, March 13th, by 7 pm GMT at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Unlike last year’s ceremony, which had only the presenters physically and a virtual audience, this year’s ceremony will have a live audience.

42-year-old Wilson was recently announced as the solo host for the award ceremony, and many fans are excited to see how she will work the stage. The “Bridesmaids” actress will follow in the footsteps of Edith Bowman and Dermot O’Leary, who hosted last year’s show. 

As for the BAFTA red carpet, comedian Tom Allen and TV presenter AJ Odudu have been announced as the hosts who will interview the nominees and guests as they arrive at the venue. 

During an interview with Radio Times, the “Pitch Perfect” actress said that she is very aware that fellow comedians have faced a “hard time” for some of their statements. So she’s being careful not to say something that could get her “kicked out of the country.”

She admitted that her role as a host for the show is “different from presenting one award” and said, “your head is on the chopping block as the host, which is a bit scary. I get very nervous. It’s a very hard time for comedians, because what can you say without being canceled?”

However, she shared that she has always been a cheeky and daring person, so it’s a line that she wants to thread. She explained that she hopes that fans and the audience know that everything she says comes from “a good place.”

There are usually royal family members at each BAFTA awards ceremony, as it is quite a prestigious film event. Wilson also spoke about how excited she is for them to be at a ceremony that she’s hosting.

She said, “Obviously, there are usually royals in attendance; that’s exciting for me because my middle name is Elizabeth, after the Queen, and my sisters and my brother have royal middle names. It just adds that extra class if the royals attend.”

When asked if their presence would affect her plans to crack a few jokes about the family, she said, “Will I still tell a joke? Yeah, but I’m obviously not going to say anything that’s going to get me kicked out of the country.”

Wilson also revealed that she’s doing all the due diligence to ensure her jokes will fly well with the members of the royal family present. She explained that she has well-placed sources to audit and approve her jokes. 

She said, “I do have a royal family insider. I won’t say who. I sometimes run a joke by this insider, and they give me the thumbs up or thumbs down.” This means that the chances of her getting kicked out of the country are, thankfully, very low.